Page Eight (TV 2011)

Johnny Worricker (Bill Nighy) is a long-serving MI5 officer. His boss and best friend Benedict Baron (Michael Gambon) dies suddenly, leaving behind him an inexplicable file, threatening the... See full summary »

Director:

David Hare

Writer:

David Hare

Stars:

Bill Nighy, Rachel Weisz, Tom Hughes

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Bill Nighy	...	Johnny Worricker
Rachel Weisz	...	Nancy Pierpan
Tom Hughes	...	Ralph Wilson
Michael Gambon	...	Benedict Baron
Judy Davis	...	Jill Tankard
Rakhee Thakrar	...	Muna Hammami
Saskia Reeves	...	Anthea Catcheside
Ewen Bremner	...	Rollo Maverley
Felicity Jones	...	Julianne Worricker
Richard Lintern	...	Max Vallance
Holly Aird	...	Anna Hervé
Andrew Cleaver	...	Brian Lord
Kate Burdette	...	Allegra Betts
Ralph Fiennes	...	Alec Beasley
Alice Krige	...	Emma Baron

Storyline

Johnny Worricker (Bill Nighy) is a long-serving MI5 officer. His boss and best friend Benedict Baron (Michael Gambon) dies suddenly, leaving behind him an inexplicable file, threatening the stability of the organization. Meanwhile, a seemingly chance encounter with Johnny's striking next-door neighbor and political activist Nancy Pierpan (Rachel Weisz) seems too good to be true. Johnny is forced to walk out of his job, and then out of his identity to find out the truth. Set in London and Cambridge, PAGE EIGHT is a contemporary spy film for the BBC, which addresses intelligence issues and moral dilemmas peculiar to the new century.

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Plot Keywords:

spy | mi5 | intelligence service | security code | english politics | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 November 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die Verschwörung

Filming Locations:

Jesus College, Cambridge University, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Heyday Films, Runaway Fridge TV, Carnival Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Writer/director David Hare has told some associates that if Page 8 works, he might bring Bill Nighy's character Johnny Worricker back, as part of a trilogy of TV films.

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Goofs

As Johnny Worricker is driving through Westminster at night he is listening to the Shipping Forecast which is broadcast at 00:48 and 05:20. The time on the Clock Tower (Big Ben) shows 01:53.

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Quotes

Nancy Pierpan: When you don't know the truth everything freezes and you can't move on.

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Connections

Features The Seven Lively Arts: The Sound of Jazz (1957)

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Soundtracks

"Fine and Mellow"
written by Billie Holiday
Used by kind permission of Carlin Music Corp
Performance of Billie Holiday used with permission as presented

User Reviews

Powerful political thriller

The cast is strong and the writing adept, and this carries a fascinating film dealing with the tensions between politics and intelligence gathering. David Hare clearly has been disturbed by how closely our (British) politicians may have become involved with 'extraordinary rendition' and intelligence gathered from the use of torture by the Americans.

Bill Nighy leads as a cerebral senior intelligence officer dealing with a world where fellow spies are not all Oxbridge, even if the Prime Minister is. His neighbour seems to appear from nowhere, and in the form of the lovely Rachel Weisz. Can she be trusted? And what of his one time tutor and now boss, played convincingly by Michael Gambon? The early scene where the spies meet the politicians, in the form of the Home Secretary (Saskia Reeves) and her assistant, is pure Hare theatre. A wonderful script delivered with panache.

The tension builds slowly but relentlessly. Maybe the grasp of the world of spies does not have Le Carre's inside track, but Hare gives us a film well worth watching.